12/01/2026 to Police Scotland seeking an Internal Review
Subject: Request for review – Refusal under FOISA ss.25 and 27
I request an internal review of your response to my information request seeking:
The total number of recorded incidents of theft of a motor vehicle for calendar years 2023, 2024 and 2025.
I am dissatisfied with the response for the reasons set out below.
- Section 25(1) – “Reasonably obtainable”
You rely on section 25(1) of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“FOISA”) on the basis that the information is publicly available via a multi-sheet Excel workbook and can be obtained by filtering the data manually.
While I accept that Police Scotland publishes crime statistics in spreadsheet form, I do not accept that this renders the information I requested “reasonably obtainable” within the meaning of section 25(1).
My request was for a single numerical figure (or three figures), not for access to a raw dataset requiring:
• navigation of a large spreadsheet,
• application of filters,
• interpretation of crime classifications, and
• aggregation of results.
The information I seek is clearly held in an aggregated form, as it is the same data Police Scotland uses internally and for official publications. FOISA does not permit an authority to refuse a request merely because the applicant could derive the answer themselves through data processing.
OSIC decisions consistently distinguish between:
• information being available, and
• information being reasonably obtainable in the form requested.
Requiring an applicant to perform data extraction and aggregation in order to obtain a single headline number is overly onerous and inconsistent with the purpose and spirit of FOISA.
- Failure to comply with the duty to advise and assist (section 15 FOISA)
Although your response cites section 16 (refusal notice), it does not demonstrate compliance with section 15, which places a positive duty on authorities to advise and assist applicants.
Where a requester seeks a simple numerical answer derived from published data, reasonable assistance would include:
• confirming the figure directly, or
• providing a short table or summary.
Directing an applicant to a complex spreadsheet and instructing them to “filter” data does not meet the standard of assistance envisaged by section 15, particularly where the burden on the authority to extract the figure would be minimal.
- Section 27(1) – Information intended for future publication
You also rely on section 27(1) to withhold data for July–December 2025.
While I accept that section 27(1) can apply where there is a settled intention to publish, the exemption is qualified and subject to a public interest test.
In this case:
• The information requested is high-level statistical data, not sensitive operational material.
• The request concerns vehicle crime trends, a matter of clear public interest.
• Partial disclosure (e.g. provisional or to-date figures) would not prejudice publication.
Your response does not explain:
• the precise publication date,
• whether the intention to publish was settled at the time of the request, or
• why the public interest favours withholding a simple numerical total.
A blanket refusal without this reasoning does not satisfy FOISA requirements.
- Overall proportionality and purpose of FOISA
FOISA exists to promote transparency and meaningful public access to information. Expecting an applicant to independently process raw statistical data in order to extract a basic figure undermines that purpose.
This is particularly so where:
• the information is already held in summary form, and
• disclosure would involve negligible additional effort.
- Remedy sought
I therefore ask that, on review, Police Scotland:
- Provide the total number of recorded incidents of theft of a motor vehicle for calendar years 2023 and 2024 directly; and
- Reconsider the application of section 27(1) to 2025 data, or provide a clearer and more specific justification for its continued withholding.
I look forward to your review response within the statutory timeframe.
Yours faithfully,